Cultural Shifts to Brand Shifts
If brands don’t adapt to new trends and remain culturally relevant, they will be forgotten or irrelevant.
Companies and brands are obliged to adjust to enormous cultural transformations, and modify brand names or alter pseudonyms, that were, in some instances, many years old.
- Unilever changed its leading skincare brand Fair & Lovely to Glow & Lovely after fairness products came under societal criticism amid a worldwide discussion over racial inequity.
- PepsiCo’s Quaker Foods got rid of its traditional “Aunt Jemima” brand name and emblem, after 130 years of sustained sales; the new name is Pearl Milling Company, after the company’s original proprietors.
- Weight Watchers changed its name to WW as it unveiled a big attempt to transition the weight-loss organization into a health brand. It occurred when the body-positivity movement was gathering pace, and the firm faced growing competition from companies focusing on self-care and nutrition.
Companies, logos & phrases come with history, which seemed relevant for a long time but are a misfit in today’s society. Several businesses are conducting thorough inventories of their company and brand names. We’re talking about ensuring an absence of offence.
Here are a few pointers to accomplish it effectively:
- Rebranding is more about changing your demeanour than changing the veneer.- Rebranding implies altering the status quo. There are instances when you will say: these are not our values anymore.
- During the rebranding process, you will have to deal concerning problems that are a lot deeper than colours. You will have to work on internal & external culture as much as on the brand. One may argue that it’s even more. It’s up to you to initiate discussions and get others involved. Defining boundaries is essential. You must take as much time as is necessary.
- The pain of a brand relaunch. You must realize that midstream rebranding is neither simple nor inexpensive. Nonetheless, it could be required. Instead of just agreeing, you should think things out. The choice to rebrand is significant. Be smart about it. Go quickly yet carefully. Don’t be hesitant, and don’t dismiss the idea of transition out of hand.
- Be Proactive. There’s no sense waiting for public outcry to take action since it might come when it’s already too late. It’s best to go forward with the assumption that it’s time to retire names and terminology that may be seen as culturally offensive to modern sensibilities.
- Broader considerations. Please give some thought to whether or not the public associates your brand name with any negative connotations. It has to anticipate a much broader and required cultural understanding and sensitivity, rather than only being a reaction to current social movements. Is it possible that your brand name is just dated? How welcoming — or unwelcoming — is it? Do not simply rely on our own opinions, but rather ask around, conduct polls, and thoroughly investigate. Words that are acceptable to one group (or one place) may offend another.
- Keep in mind that time comes and goes and it changes. What was formerly considered acceptable may no longer be so.
- Prioritise your cause/ purpose. When it’s time to rebrand, make sure that the mission and core values are clear right away. We have the option of being overt, as in “The Honest Truth,” “Open Secret,” “Innocent Smoothies,” and or oblique, as in “Nike”
- Do What You Say You’re Going to Do- Don’t forget that what you do in business is more important than how your brand name makes you look. What is important is the meaning behind your name. In other words, it is not sufficient to just make sure your brand does not offend; you must also ensure that none of your goods, relationships, financial dealings, etc. does the same. Nonetheless, the reputation of our company or product is not insignificant. The company was doomed from the start due to the bad reputation of its name and the owners’ stubbornness in refusing to change it.
Change your voice and your role as you go.
There is a significant divide between politics and morals, and it is essential to keep this in mind while discussing roles. For brands, doubling down on their core principles offers the greatest possibility for growth. Positive and values-based movements need not be political.
